ENVIRONMENTAL AND SOCIAL ASSESSMENT OF

DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS

Development activities for historic properties(e.g. buildings, monuments, structures, ships,railroad locomotives and rolling stock, etc.)including restoration, rehabilitation,preservation, reconstruction, and site-specificplanning for these activities

WHAT ARE DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS

Water Supply & Sewerage

Transportation services

Provision of Sewerage/Sanitation facilities

Solid Waste Management

Waste Water treatment

etc.

LIST OF PROJECT THAT COME UNDER CITY ENTITTES

Water Supply & Sewerage

Transportation services

Provision of Sewerage/Sanitation facilities

Solid Waste Management

Waste Water treatment

• Social FrameworkLandAcquisitionAct, 1894(as amended in 1984)-

Punjab Local GovernmentOrdinance, 2001

• Environmental FrameworkPunjab Environmental Protection Act, 1997 (Amended,2012)

Pakistan Environment Protection Agency Review ofIEE and EIA Regulations, 2000

REGULATORY FRAMEWORK TO ADRESS SOCIO-ENVIRONMENTAL

ISSUES

• Land equation

• Resettlement

• Compensation

• Rehabilitation

• Gender

• Social and health

SOCIAL ISSUES

• Loss of Assets

• Loss of crops

• Unavailability of land for cultivation

• Economic loss

• Impacts on vulnerable groups ( women, children,indigenous people, people in old age, people withspecial needs)

• Schedule tribes/tribal groups describe social groupswith a social and cultural identity distinct from thedominance society that makes them vulnerable tobeing disadvantaged in the development process.

LAND ACQUISITION

• During construction of Terbela dam, largereservoirs of the dam submerged 135villages resulting in displacement about 96,000 people.

• During Mangla Dam raising, approximatelypopulation of 44,000 were displaced

• Remodeling of Taunsa Barrage about 200families were displaced and amongvulnerable groups there were dozen ofwomen, children and

LAND ACQUISITION IN PAKSITAN

• indigenous communities of in-land fisherfolk.This project also indirectly influencedmillions of those people who loss theircultivated land and could not grow crops

• Tenants/ share croppers

• loss of lease and tenancy interests in land due toacquisition; loss of improvements and crops on land

• Landless/wage laborers

• loss of employment opportunities from affectedland

• Squatters and vendors

• loss of employment or income from relocation

• Indigenous or tribal peoples

• loss of traditional land rights and subsistenceincomes

RESETTLEMENT ISSUES

• Women and especially female heads ofhouseholds

• Loss of access to land or assets offamily members having formal title.

• Cultural property

• Loss of culture property

Continued

• Pakistan ranks as one of the worstcountries in the worldin terms of gender gapaccording to the WorldEconomic Forum’s Global GenderGap Report 2009

GENDER RELATED ISSUES

• 40% population is living in Kat chiAbadis/Slums.

• Around 65% of urban people have sanitationfacilities, with unsafe disposal of excreta awayfrom the dwelling units.

• Disposal of wastewater is generally throughopen drains, directly on roads, or directly in tothe waterways.

• Sewage plants installed in metropolitan citiesof the country are operating onlyintermittently or under capacity.

ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES

• Main waterways are receiving waste volumeslarger than their assimilative capacity.

• Most of the people are unaware of therelationship between unsafe excretadisposal and diarrhea.

• About 16.28 million Pakistanis (40% of totalurban population) are under risk of airpollution, which is costing Rs. 25.7 billionevery year on account of health merely bynot complying with the WHO Ambient AirQuality Standards

• Urban areas of Pakistan generate about54,850 tons of solid waste daily.

• Transport Sector is the major source of noisealong with heavy industry & power sector.

• Loss, fragmentation and degradation ofnatural habitat

• Large-scale

• desertification due to improper land use,uncontrolled livestock grazing, and illegal

To identify and assess any potentially adverse environmental effects of a new development.

The adverse impacts could be avoided or reduce.

To ensure that environmental consequences were taken into account during planning, designing & decision making process

To influence how it is subsequently managed during its implementation.

NEED OF ASSESSMENT

REGULATORY FRAMEWORK IN PAKISTAN FOR ENVIRONMENTAL

ASSESSMENT

22

The ‘Section 12’ of the Pakistan EnvironmentalProtection Act (PEPA-1997) directs that an InitialEnvironmental Examination (IEE) orEnvironmental Impact Assessment (EIA) must becarried out where any project is likely to causeadverse environmental effect.

SECTION 12’ OF THE PAKISTAN ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION ACT

(PEPA-1997)

The Pakistan Environmental ProtectionAgency (Pak-EPA) issued the EnvironmentalAssessment Guidelines in year-1997, whichincluded both the general and the sectoralguidelines. The IEE/EIA Regulations wereissued in year-2000, regarding theenvironmental assessment procedures, thusgiving a firm legal status to IEE/EIA.

IEE/EIA Regulations 2000

The category of projects, for which IEE or EIAis mandatory and has been described in theIEE/EIA Schedule-I (for projects requiring anIEE) and Schedule-II (for projects requiringan EIA) for the IEE/EIA Regulations, 2000.

Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) thestudy to predict the effect of a proposedactivity/project on the environment and alsorefers to the evaluation of the environmentalimpacts likely to raise from a major projectsignificantly affecting the environment

WHAT IS ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT (EIA) ?

Preliminary examination of the impacts from proposed project

WHAT IS INITIAL ENVIRONMENTAL EXAMINATION (IEE) ?

Protect human health and safety;

Avoid irreversible changes and serious damage tothe environment;

Safeguard valued resources, natural areas andecosystem components; and

Enhance the social aspects of the proposal.

OBJECTIVES OF EIA

Provides systematic methods of impact

assessment

Estimates the cost/benefit trade-off of alternative

actions

Facilitates the public participation

Provides an effective mechanism for coordination,

environmental integration, negotiations and feed back

Achieve a balance between the impact of

developmental and environmental concern

Top-level decision making

ADVANTAGES OF EIA

Screening: deciding whether an EIA isrequired based on information collected.

Scoping: identify key issues and concerns ofinterested parties.

Identifying and evaluating alternatives:listing alternative sites and techniques andthe impacts of each.

Mitigating measures dealing withuncertainty: reviewing proposed action toprevent or minimize the potential adverse

KEY ELEMENTS OF EIA

effects of the project.

Issuing environmental statements: reportingthe findings of the EIA.

• Protecting human and environmental healthfrom contamination of environment

• Conservation of biodiversity,

• Safeguarding the productivity of naturalresources

• Level of awareness and understanding.

• Quality of EIA Review.

• Public consultation: One of the majordrawbacks in the EIA package is that it does

MAJOR EIA CHALLENGES IN PAKISTAN

not have guidelines for public consultations

Jurisdiction of responsibility

Implementation problems:

Baseline data

Procedures

Capacity to implement

Institutional Mechanisms

Consultancy Services

Post Monitoring & Analysis of EIA.

EXAMPLES OF EIA IN PAKISTAN

Environmental Impact Assessment report of theproject required under section 8 of the then in voguePakistan Environmental Protection Ordinance, 1983was neither prepared nor subjected to anyreview/approval process at the time of initiation,construction or even at completion stage of theproject.

This motorway passes through the agricultural beltof the province of Punjab and is associated withseveral positive and negative impacts on the life of

LAHORE-ISLAMABAD MOTORWAY

the people living in the urban and rural areasalong the motorway. Apart from this, theproject of this magnitude diverts massiveamount of financial resources needed for otherpriority projects in other regions of thecountry, with consequent socio-economic andenvironmental implications.

Chandni Chowk flyover,

6th Road flyover project

Rawalpindi Institute of Cardiology and

Peshawar Road expansion projects

Carried out without getting the EIA reports.

SOME OTHER EXAMPLES

Flyover at Kalma Chowk and Bus Rapid TransitSystem in Lahore are the examples of projectsfor which EIA has been submitted, either theproponents actually conducted the EIA studiesduring construction of the project in reaction tonotice received from concerned EPA or theproject initiated just without consideringpublic concerns or getting environmentalclearance.

FLYOVER AT KALMA CHOWK AND BUS RAPID TRANSIT SYSTEM IN LAHORE

Rehabilitation of Taunsa Barrage Project,

Ghazi Brotha Hydro Power Project,

Sindh On-Farm Water Management Project.

Pakistan Highway Rehabilitation Project

POSITIVE DEVELOPMENT

Interview of officials, discussions with EIA expertsand review of selected EIA reports reveal that EIA ofsome public sector projects done in recent years canbe considered above projects as good practice casesin the Pakistani context.

•A proponent of a project falling in any categoryspecified in Schedule I shall file an IEE with theFederal Agency, and the provisions of Section(12) shall apply to such project .

•A proponent of a project falling in any categoryspecified in Schedule II shall file an EIA with theFederal Agency, and the provisions of Section(12) shall apply to such project.

PROJECTS REQUIRING AN IEE & EIA

SOCIAL IMPACT ASSESMENT

The process of assessing or estimating, inadvance, the social consequences that are likelyto follow from specific policy actions or projectdevelopment, particularly in the context ofappropriate national, state, or provincialenvironmental policy legislation.

WHAT IS SOCIAL ASSESSMENT

Lifestyle impacts – on the way people behaveand relate to family, friends and cohorts on aday-to-day basis;

Cultural impacts – on shared customs,obligations, values, language, religious beliefand other elements which make a social orethnic group distinct;

Community impacts – on infrastructure,services, voluntary organisations, activitynetworks and cohesion;

TYPES OF SOCIAL IMPACT

Amenity/quality of life impacts – on senseof place, aesthetics and heritage, perceptionof belonging, security and livability, andaspirations for the future; and

Health impacts – on mental, physical andsocial well being, although these aspects arealso the subject of health impact assessment

• Demographic change, e.g. size andcomposition of resident population, influx oftemporary work force or new recreationalusers (disrupts the cohesion of a small, stablecommunity);

• Economic change, e.g. new patterns ofemployment/ income, real estate speculation(marginalizes long term, older residents);

• Environmental change, e.g. alterations toland use, natural habitat and hydrological

SOCIAL IMPACTS OF DEVELOPMENT PROPOSALS

regime (loss of subsistence or livelihood inresource dependent community); and

• Institutional change, e.g. in the structure oflocal government or traditional leadership,zoning by-laws or land tenure (reducedaccess or loss of control leads todisempowerment or impoverishment of theestablished population).

Public Involvement- Develop an effectivepublic plan to involve all potentially affectedpublics

Identification of Alternatives - Describe theproposed action or policy change andreasonable alternatives.

Baseline Conditions - Describe the relevanthuman environment/area of influence andbaseline conditions.

STEPS IN THE SOCIAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT PROCESS

• Project Proponent

• Community

• Government Agencies

• Consultants

• The Public

SIA PARTICIPANTS

• landfill and hazardous waste disposal sites(perceived health risks, loss of amenity);

• power and industrial plants (community stressfrom influx of work force, pressure oninfrastructure);

• dams and reservoirs (lifestyle disruption resultingfrom relocation, land use alteration or long leadtime to full impoundment); and

• roads and linear developments (dislocation ofactivity networks and relationships).

Examples of projects with important and ‘everyday’ Social Impacts include:

• reduced impact on communities orindividuals – identification of mitigationmeasures is an integral element of SIA;

• enhanced benefits to those affected – SIApreparation also helps identify measures suchas job training packages;

• avoiding delays and obstruction – a wellprepared SIA demonstrates that socialimpacts are taken seriously and helps to gaindevelopment approval;

BENEFIT OF SIA

• lowered costs – addressing social impactsand mitigation measures at an early stagehelps to avoid costly errors and remedialactions imposed at a later stage by regulatoryagencies;

• better community and stakeholderrelationships – experience has shown thatSIA can help to allay fear and concern andbuild a basis of trust and cooperationnecessary for the proponent to successfullyintroduce and operate the project; and

• Improved proposals – an SIA providesinformation that adds value to existingprojects and helps to design future ones.

Development projects that displace people involuntarilygenerally give rise to severe economic, social, andenvironmental problems:

•production systems are dismantled;

• productive assets and income sources are lost;

•people are relocated to environment where theirproductive skills may be less applicable and the competitionfor resources greater;

•community structures and social networks are weakened;

•kin groups are dispersed; and cultural identity, traditionalauthority, and

•the potential for mutual help are diminished.

RESETTLEMENT ISSUES

Sector Project Components likely to have

Resettlement Effects

Transport Road or rail alignment

Associated stations, terminals, bridges

Airports, seaports, river ports

Power and energy Transmission alignment

Power generation plants, transmission

stations, substations, and access roads

Hydroelectric power reservoirs

Water supply and sanitation Reticulation systems

Pumping stations, treatment sites

Reservoirs for water supply

Resettlement in Different Project Types

Solid waste Transfer stations, landfill sites

Urban renewal Urban infrastructure sites

Health Sites for hospitals, clinics, teaching

facilities

Education Sites for schools, training institutions, etc.

Irrigation and Flood control Canal alignments; protective

embankments, and associated works

Dams

Mining operations Strip mining

Forestry developments Reforestation, industrial plantations,

forest closure

Parks, conservation sites National parks or biodiversity areas

TOPICS CONTENTS

Scope of landacquisition andresettlement

Describe alternative options, if any, considered tominimize land acquisition and its effects, and why theremaining effects are unavoidable.Summarize key effects in terms of land acquired,assets lost, and people displaced from homes orlivelihoods.

Objectives, policyframework, andentitlements

Describe key national and local land, compensationand resettlement policies, laws, and guidelines thatapply to project.

Consultation, andgrievance redressparticipation

Describe consultation processes and procedures forredress of grievances

Resettlement Plan

Compensation,relocation, andincomerestoration

Describe arrangements for valuing and disbursingcompensation.Describe arrangements for housing relocation,including transfer and establishment.Describe income restoration measures to beimplemented.Identify any environmental risks, describemanagement and monitoring steps.

Resettlementbudget andfinancing

Identify land acquisition and resettlement costs andfunding sources.

ImplementationSchedule

Provide time schedule showing how people affectedwill be provided for before demolition begins.

Monitoring andevaluation

Specify arrangements for M&E.

• The Land Acquisition Act - 1894 (LAA) hasbeen the de facto policy governingresettlement and compensation to the projectaffected persons.

• The Resettlement Policy of Pakistan has notyet been approved. It is currently in a draftform with the Pakistan EnvironmentalProtection Agency.

• The policy has been formulated to not onlycover affected persons (APs) in existing

RESETTLEMENT POLICIES IN PAKSITAN

systems but also to ensure an equitable and uniformtreatment of resettlement issues all over Pakistan.This policy will apply to all development projectsinvolving adverse social impacts, including landacquisition, loss of assets, income, business etc.

CONCLUSION